Samsung Electronics is transferring fab-management practices to South Korea’s public nano fabs to improve safety, equipment reliability, and semiconductor R&D infrastructure for companies and research institutions.
Samsung Electronics is extending its semiconductor manufacturing expertise beyond its own fabs to strengthen South Korea’s public semiconductor R&D infrastructure, with a focus on safety, cleanroom discipline, equipment maintenance, and operational efficiency.
Samsung’s Win-Win Cooperation Center under its Device Solutions (DS) Division conducted the programme from March to August 2026 at the Nano Convergence Technology Institute’s public nano fab at Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH). The initiative follows an MoU signed in March 2025 by South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT), Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, and DB HiTek.
The model covers workplace safety and environmental management, cleanliness control, and equipment operation and maintenance. Safety measures addressed chemical storage, piping leaks and corrosion, fire-safety facilities, local exhaust systems, and protective equipment.
The facility also adopted Samsung’s “5S3J” principles for cleanroom organisation: sorting, setting in order, shining, standardising, sustaining, along with the right item, right quantity, and right location. Equipment maintenance was strengthened through preventive practices and an eight-system inspection covering components including drive motors, power transmission, electrical wiring, control systems, and instrumentation.
“The public nano fab is a key part of South Korea’s semiconductor ecosystem, allowing domestic materials, parts and equipment companies to develop and verify new technologies and products,” said Ji Hyun-ki, executive vice president and head of the Win-Win Cooperation Center at Samsung Electronics’ DS Division.
MSIT plans to extend the model to public nano fabs nationwide, including KANC and Seoul National University’s Inter-university Semiconductor Research Center. Results will also be shared across MoaFab, which connects 14 public nano fabs.
